Mumbai, March 27 -- The key equity indices ended with decent gains on Thursday, supported by continuous foreign fund inflows and buying in blue-chip stocks, aiding the recovery in equities. The Nifty settled above the 23,550 mark. Trading was volatile due to the monthly Nifty50 F&O series expiry today.

PSU bank, media and oil & gas shares advanced while auto and pharma stocks declined.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex rallied 317.93 points or 0.41% to 77,606.43. The Nifty 50 index added 105.10 points or 0.45% to 23,591.95.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.46% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.90%.

The market breadth was negative. On th...